The Colony’s purpose is to provide momentum; to be an impetus, for men and women fitting the criteria to focus, complete, and polish work; to develop work strong enough to stand on its own. These passionate emerging writers come from a multitude of combination of walks; single, African-American, Caribbean, Mediterranean, Hispanic, Latino, East Asian, Native American, African, married, gay, lesbian, or straight. We've hosted the 2015 Coretta Scott King/ John Steptoe Award winner. The next Pulitzer Prize winner, Booker Prize winner, and definitely another New York Times Best Seller may be here. These writers are the next wave.

One of the most precious things in this world is time. Those who suffer often wish to trade it in while those with means, or simply well received lives, often bargain with God for more of it. It is beyond any quantifiable value; it is, in short, priceless. Having the time and space (and healthy environs) afforded me the opportunity to completely fail in my writings with time leftover to rectify these shortcomings. Great successes often succeed failure. Too often, we as artists are scarcely afforded the opportunity to take chances for fear of failure . . . irrecoverable failure and, as a result, the work suffers. ~ Charles Vincent Burwell2015 Writer-in-Residence